


Day 237

by Josh_the_Bard



Series: A Year in Kirkwall [237]
Category: Dragon Age (Video Games), Dragon Age II, Dragon Age: Inquisition
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-25
Updated: 2020-08-25
Packaged: 2021-03-06 22:47:54
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,186
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26106709
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Josh_the_Bard/pseuds/Josh_the_Bard
Series: A Year in Kirkwall [237]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1589257
Kudos: 1





	Day 237

Carmello arrived at the Circle as early as he could get away from his family. Thrask had been surprisingly helpful, not what Carmello had expected from one of Kirkwall’s templars. He was greeted at the entrance to the Gallows and brought to a room that had been converted to a kind of auditorium. A venerable mage and templar waited for him there, alongside another red-haired templar who watched Carmello suspiciously. 

“Greeting Lord Trevelyan,” said the mage. “I am Enchanter Hellena.” There was a moment of awkward silence and the mage elbowed her companion.

“What?” the templar shrieked. “Oh, umm… Greeting Lord...”

“Trevelyan,” the mage whispered.

“Trevelyan,” the templar repeated. Carmello glared at Thrask. Perhaps the templar was not as helpful as he had first appeared. The man looked embarrassed and coughed awkwardly.

“I brought your request to Meredith,” he explained. “These were the two she authorized to meet with you. There are few that can be spared from their duties presently.”

Carmello looked back at the templar. He had no hair on the top of his head but his sideburns and mustache seemed to stand straight out from his face. The man gave Carmello a lopsided smile as he made eye contact with his left eye.

“Is he alright?” Carmello asked. He had seen plenty of drunkards in his life but this seemed like something more. He had heard about the mental decay that templars suffered later in life and Carmello had to wonder if this man was capable of answering his questions.

“What you’re looking at,” said the third templar, “is the price we templars pay to keep you poncy nobles safe from the maleficarum that hunt the streets at night. That is the fate that awaits all of us, if the robes don’t get us first.”

“This is Sir Mettin,” Thrask said. Carmello got the impression that the two men did not get along. “He is here to… facilitate your interview.” When Thrask said facilitate, Carmello heard censor. Father had said that the templars in Kirkwall had been visited by the Seekers, at the behest of a mage no less, and were closing ranks to protect themselves. He would have to choose his questions carefully. He directed his attention to the mage.

“Have you always been in the Kirkwall circle?” he asked, he figured that would be innocuous enough. Helana nodded.

“Ever since my magic manifested when I was eight,” she replied. “I was being chased by my brother and all of a sudden he flew away from me. He broke his arm. I was terrified until the templars came and explained what was happening. I, and my family owe them our lives.”

“When you first arrived,” Carmello asked. “Was the Circle very different then it was today? Have there been a lot of new rules? That sort of thing.”

Helena looked to Sir Mettin before responding. Carmello’s hopes for this meeting soured considerably.

“It would be a lie to say that things have been exactly the same,” she said carefully. “When I first arrived Meredith wasn’t even born yet. She made a lot of changes. Made things more organized here. It helped make things more peaceful for a time.”

“When did the trouble with the apostates start,” Carmello asked.

“Kirkwall has always had problems with apostates,” Sir Mettin replied before anyone else could. “The history of Thedas is a history of abuses by mages.”

“I remember what happened!” Sir Roderik blurted out. The other templates seemed surprised by the man’s sudden outburst. Mettin looked like he wanted to argue but the man continued.

“We found so many hidden apostated after Meredith became Knight Commander. We were lazy before but the girl whipped us into right shape. We brought more mages into the circle that year then we had in the past five combined. It was hard to manage so many all at once, we had to group Harrowings for a while.”

“I remember that time,” Helena added. “Meredith added yet more rules to make it easier for the templars to watch over us. We had to go to do everything at a specific time. The same time every day.”

“It was the captured apostates that started causing trouble,” Roderic said. “They told the others stories about what it was like to live outside the Circle. There were escape attempts, Meredith had to increase our garrison.”

“The apostated increasingly turned to blood magic to evade the templars,” Helaina said. “There were so many incidences of magical attacks and demon possessions. Meredith had her pick of eager recruits.”

“So there you have it,” Sir. Mettin said. “Meredith brought order and the mages threw a tantrum, a tantrum that they are still insisting on carrying on to this day. No matter how many innocents suffer for it.”

“It sounds more like the mages learned what freedom was like and what they were missing,” Carmello said. Sir Mettin sneered at him and strode over to a book that had been left in the room. He opened it up and flipped through.

“These are records of magical attacks for that time,” he said. “And lists of casualties.” Mettin practically shoved the book into Carmello’s face. The numbers were staggering. Whole blocks of people wiped out by demons, city officials controlled by blood magic. Whole classes of templar recruits killed during escape attempts.

“Desperate people do desperate things,” Thrask said. He wouldn’t meen anyone’s eyes as he spoke.

“I deperat man with a sword could kill a half-dozen at most,” Mettin snapped. “A desperate mage can kill an entire village.”

Carmello pushed Mettin’s book aside. He had one of his own that he offered.

“The Circle at Dairsmuid in Rivain has never had problems at this level,” he countered. “They allow mages more leeway than any other in Thedas.” he turned to Helena. “Do you think the mages would have resisted less if they were afforded more freedom in the Circle? Would you not have liked to had been allowed to keep in contact with your family?”

Sir Mettin sprang into action. He snatched the book from Carmello’s hands and shoved Helena towards the door. The old woman stumbled and nearly fell but managed to grab onto Roderik for support. The templar wobbled but managed to keep his feet. The two made their way for the exit, leaning on each other for support.

“That’s all the time we can spare for today,” Mettin said.

“I have more questions,” Carmello protested. 

“Get him out of here,” Mettin said to Thrask. Thrask put a gentle, but firm hand on Carmello’s shoulder and steered him towards the door opposite to the one the others were moving towards.

“Come this way My Lord,” he said. When they were out of earshot of the others he whispered in Carmello’s ear.

“Meet me by the docks before you leave tomorrow,” said the templar. “I think I have the answers you seek. And a story I cannot tell you here.”

Carmello made eye contact with the templar and gave him the slightest of nods. Hopefully the trip to this troubled city would not be in vain.


End file.
